Senior Director, Safety Strategy & Training - Facilities Maintenance

Wal-Mart • Bentonville, AR

45d • $130,000 - $260,000 • Onsite

About The Position

Walmart's Maintenance & Facilities organization keeps our stores, clubs, distribution centers, and fulfillment sites running safely and reliably at massive scale. The Senior Director of Safety & Training sets the strategy and leads the teams that (1) build world class career pathways for skilled trades and facilities professionals and (2) strengthen a proactive, data driven safety culture across field maintenance operations. You'll lead a national team of safety and learning professionals and deliver measurable improvements in talent readiness, incident reduction, and operational continuity.

Requirements

• 12+ years of progressive leadership in EHS/safety and/or technical training within maintenance, facilities, utilities, manufacturing, or supply chain environments; multi‑site scale preferred.
• Proven experience building enterprise safety programs and skilled‑trades learning architectures (apprenticeship, credentialing, OJT).
• Strong cross‑functional leadership-success partnering with Legal, HR/People, L&D/Academy, Compliance/EHS, Procurement, and Operations.
• Demonstrated analytics fluency: ability to design leading/lagging metrics, integrate data across LMS/CMMS/EAM, and translate insights into action.
• Exceptional communication and change leadership skills; able to influence at all levels.
• Bachelor's degree in Safety, Engineering, Industrial/Operations, HR/Learning, or related field; advanced degree a plus.
• Option 1: Bachelor's degree in business, environmental health and safety, or related area and 5 years' experience in safety management or related area.
• Option 2: 7 years' experience in compliance, legal, project management, or related area.
• 4 years' supervisory experience.

Nice To Haves

• CSP, CHMM, CIH, CMRP, or equivalent; NFPA 70E Qualified Worker program leadership experience a plus.
• Experience with IIAR/PSM for ammonia systems, contractor safety management, and serious injury/fatality prevention frameworks.
• Experience designing or operating registered apprenticeship programs; familiarity with NATE, NCCER, or similar industry credentials.
• Juris Doctorate degree
• Prior work experience developing and implementing risk assurance strategies and frameworks.
• Prior work experience in safety design strategy within areas of design, standards, and assurance.
• Proficiency in safety management software and tools, with a strong analytical and problem-solving mindset.

Responsibilities

• Set the multi‑year vision for safety, technical training, and workforce development for the Maintenance & Facilities organization; align goals with enterprise priorities and budget.
• Lead, coach, and develop a high‑performing team of safety managers, learning designers, and program managers; build succession plans and a strong bench.
• Influence across a large, matrixed organization-driving clarity, accountability, and adoption from frontline technicians to senior leaders.
• Build deep, operating‑level partnerships with Enterprise Safety & Compliance, Legal, HR/People, Walmart Academy/L&D, Risk Management & Workers' Compensation, Asset Protection, Environmental Compliance/EHS, Labor Relations, Procurement, Finance, Technology/Data, Real Estate, Design & Construction, Operations, and Supply Chain.
• Co‑author policies, standards, and guidance with Enterprise Safety & Compliance and Legal; ensure alignment with regulatory requirements and a Just Culture/HOP approach.
• Partner with HR and Walmart Academy to translate career pathways into recruiting, onboarding, apprenticeship, credentialing, and instructor‑led/OJT programs, coordinate with People Analytics on skills and staffing insights.
• Work with Real Estate, Design, and Construction to embed "design for maintainability and safety" into new builds and remodels; drive safer access, isolation, and standardization.
• Align with Procurement on contractor safety qualification, specialized vendors, PPE/technology standards, and training providers; ensure commercial terms reinforce safety and competency expectations.
• Coordinate with Finance and Technology/Data teams to integrate safety and training metrics into enterprise dashboards and planning cycles.
• Own the safety management system for maintenance activities (e.g., electrical work, HVAC/R, ammonia refrigeration, working at height, hot work, confined space, LOTO/energy control, contractor safety).
• Establish and govern enterprise standards, life‑saving rules, and critical controls; modernize policies to reflect Human & Organizational Performance (HOP) and a Just Culture.
• Deploy risk assessment and SIF (Serious Injury & Fatality) prevention programs; scale leading indicators (near‑miss, safety observations, JHAs, critical‑control verification) and reduce TRIR/DART.
• Conduct assurance through audits and field verifications; lead root cause analysis and corrective‑action effectiveness reviews for high‑risk events.
• Architect clear, stackable career pathways for skilled trades (e.g., Apprentice → Tech I/II → Senior/Master Tech → Lead/Supervisor → Manager) across HVAC/R, Electrical, Plumbing, Controls/BAS, General Facilities.
• Build a modern learning ecosystem-competency models, skills matrices, OJT/mentorship, micro‑learning, simulations/VR where applicable, and robust evaluation (Kirkpatrick/Phillips).
• Partner with community colleges, trade schools, and credentialing bodies (e.g., EPA 608, NATE, NCCER) and expand registered apprenticeship programs to deepen talent pipelines.
• Launch pre‑hire bootcamps, transition‑to‑trades pathways (e.g., military, second‑career), and upskilling/reskilling programs to close critical skill gaps.
• Integrate safety and skills data with CMMS/EAM and the LMS to produce actionable dashboards (skills distribution, certification currency, PM risk profiles, training efficacy).
• Prioritize high‑value interventions using incident trends, SIF potential, and asset risk; measure ROI through productivity, rework reduction, and downtime avoidance.
• Standardize playbooks and toolkits for field leaders: Safety Gemba, coaching checklists, JHA templates, and critical‑control verification.
• Ensure compliance with applicable regulations/standards (e.g., OSHA, NFPA 70E, IIAR/PSM for ammonia refrigeration) and company policies; coordinate with Environmental Compliance on overlapping topics.
• Lead emergency preparedness for maintenance‑related risks; strengthen contractor qualification and oversight with Procurement and field leadership.
• Manage budgets, vendor relationships (training providers, PPE & safety technology), and annual operating plans.
• Drive adoption with clear narratives-from technician‑friendly guides and toolbox talks to executive readouts-reinforcing behaviors and outcomes.
• Champion recognition programs that reward safe work, mentorship, and skills mastery.

Benefits

• At Walmart, we offer competitive pay as well as performance-based bonus awards and other great benefits for a happier mind, body, and wallet.
• Health benefits include medical, vision and dental coverage.
• Financial benefits include 401(k), stock purchase and company-paid life insurance.
• Paid time off benefits include PTO (including sick leave), parental leave, family care leave, bereavement, jury duty, and voting.
• Other benefits include short-term and long-term disability, company discounts, Military Leave Pay, adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, and more.
• You will also receive PTO and/or PPTO that can be used for vacation, sick leave, holidays, or other purposes.
• Live Better U is a Walmart-paid education benefit program for full-time and part-time associates in Walmart and Sam's Club facilities. Programs range from high school completion to bachelor's degrees, including English Language Learning and short-form certificates. Tuition, books, and fees are completely paid for by Walmart.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Industry: General Merchandise Retailers
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees